Arrangement for supporting movable machine members on horizontal slideways



y 1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ ,808

ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORIZONTALSLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 w nnuunun l w in INVENTORChir/CS MAN/aw Ba l tz A710 rway July 1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ 82,808ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORIZONTALSLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Ch rles Will/amBarf/ ew.

B MwM/y A TTO RA/E Y y 1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ ,808 ARRANGEMENT F SUPPORTINGMOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS HORIZONTAL SLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5Sheets-Sheet 5 m i. X .l I! I. J \Mwhhfll/ v aw 1 l 1 I I mvaurar? hrles Wil/Yam BeW/"luez M MM;

ATTO R/vEY July 1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ 2, ,808

ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORIZONTALSLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 1 l I I l lNVENTOR CharlesWilliam Berfkkez ATTORNEY y 6,1954 c. w. BERTHIEZ 2,682,808

ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOVABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ON HORIZONTALSLIDEWAYS Filed May 21, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVE-NTOR C h arlesVIII/ham BerHuL BY M4 ATTORNEY Patented July 6, 1954 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE ARRANGEMENT FOR SUPPORTING MOV- ABLE MACHINE MEMBERS ONHORI- ZONTAL SLIDEWAYS Charles William Berthiez, Bizy Vernon, France,assignor to Socit Nouvelle de Construction de Machins-Outils etdOutillage, Procds C.

W. B., Paris, France Application May 21, 1952, Serial No. 289,169

Claims priority, application France February 20, 1952 12 Claims.

ways, the movable machine member being partly a and resilientlysupported by a roller device adapted to roll on the said rollway andsubstantially arranged on the vertical line passing through the centreof gravity of the movable machine member.

Thus, the slideways are subjected only to a slight specific pressureintended merely to accurately guide the movable member on its supportingelement. This results in a great smoothness of operation and eliminatesthe wear of the slideways, which enables the machine to retain itsaccuracy.

It can be said that in the device which is the subject of the abovementioned application, the provision of two functions, that is to say,the supporting function of the resilient suspension roller device andthe guiding function of the slideways, allows the slideways to becompletely relieved of any strain liable to lead to excessive wear andimpair their guiding precision. Moreover, it obviates the risk of theoil film being crushed.

However, this can be achieved only if the centre of gravity of themovable member is not displaced when the machine is working. Now,

if an attachment, or tooling, is mounted on the headstock of a millingand boring machine such as the machine shown as an example in the abovementioned copending application, for instance a turret head the weightof which is considerable relative to that of the headstock, the centreof gravity of the assembly headstock turret would not be located on thesame vertical line as the centre of gravity of the headstock consideredseparately. Therefore, if, in accordance with my copending application,the resilient roller device is arranged on the vertical line of thecentre of gravity of the milling and boring headstock, this device willnot be located on the vertical line of the centre of gravity of the newassembly consisting of the headstock and of the turret head securedthereon. As a result, the slideways will be subjected to a stress theamount of which will vary in proportion to the amount of displacement 2of the centre of gravity and to the weight of the turret head. Undersuch conditions, the result which is aimed at is not exactly what itshould be. In fact, the pressure on the slideways will not be even andwill vary considerably according to the position of the headstock alongthe slideways; the oil film may be more or less crushed and may even bedestroyed at the points where the pressure is excessive. The consequencethereof will be a lack of precision in the guiding of the movable memberand the parts supported thereby and a risk of jamming.

The object of the present invention is to overcome this drawback bymaking it possible to adjust the position of the resilient roller'deviceon the movable member in such a way that the said roller device can beat any time brought on the vertical line of the centre of gravity of theassembly formed by the said movable member and the various attachmentsto be mounted thereon.

The roller of the roller suspension device is preferably carried by alever hinged on a horizontal spindle carried by the movable member,

the axis of this spindle being arranged parallelly to the direction ofthe slideways, so that the lever can be moved along this horizontalspindle and is subjected to the action of a spring which causes theroller to bear upon the rollway.

Other features of the invention will become apparent from the followingdescription and from the accompanying drawings given merely by way ofexamples and in which:

Figure 1 is a front view of an embodiment applied to a milling andboring machine the headstock of which is movable along horizontalslideways carried by a vertically movable slide;

Figure 2 is a corresponding side view;

Figure 3 is a sectional view, on a larger scale along line III-III ofFigure l, of the headstock supporting device;

Figure 4 is a section, on the same scale as Figure 3, of the headstocksupporting device taken along line IV-IV of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a section, on the same scale as the aforementioned figures,taken along line V-V of Figure 1; and

Figure 6 is a section, again on the same scale, along line VIVI ofFigure 4.

I shall, first of all, refer to Figures 1 and 2 showing the main partsof a heavy duty milling and boring machine, namely: a bed I on which acolumn 2 can be shifted, which is provided with vertical slideways 3along which can move a slide 4 supporting a headstock 5 which, in itsturn, can move horizontally along slideways 6 carried by I the slide 4.

Apart from the fact that the headstock is guided in the slideways 6 ofthe slide 4, this headstock is, as in my copending application,resiliently supported on the slide 4 by means of a device comprisingrollers which roll on a rail carried by the slide 4.

By referring more particularly to Figures 3 and 4, it can be seen thatthe headstock 5 is held in the slideways 6 of the slide l by a flange'5! secured on the slide by means of screws which are not shown, thesaid flange being positioned on the said slide by means of a bar "i2which is accurately machined and located on the slide through taperdowel pins l3 driven into suitable holes bored in the slide. The taperdowel pins l3 are provided with shoulders 14 to prevent the bar '72 fromgetting away from the slide face against which it bears.

The top surface of flange H is machined perfectly true and runs parallelto the direction of the slideways 5 of the slide 4. It serves as arollway for a roller device intended to support the greater part of theheadstock weight. This device comprises two identical rollers i5, Figs.3 and 4, each mounted on the outer race 16 of a self-aligning sphericalroller bearing the inner race ii of which is driven on a shaft 18 andimmobilized thereon by means of an elastic ring E9 engaged in a groove82 of the shaft 18. A cover 83 fitted on the roller by means ofcountersunk screws 84 closes the recess provided in the supportingroller for housing the bearing it-J1.

The shaft 18 is provided with a shoulder 35 which rests against one faceof a block 86 having a bore Si in which the extension of the shaft i8 isfitted, this extension being provided with a threaded end portion onwhich is screwed a nut 88 which bears against the opposite face of theblock 5 in order to immobilize the shaft 78 in this block. A lock-washer89 prevents the nut flit from loosening when the device is in operation.The two rollers l5 are mounted in exactly the same way and the twoblocks 86 are welded on a lever as at opposite sides thereof so that thelever and the rollers carried thereby can swing about a bar or spindle93, this lever being adapted to slide on the bar parallel to its axis.The bar is intended to support the weight of the headstock 5, as will beseen further on. Two hubs 94 the inner diameter of which is equal tothat of the bar 93 are welded on the opposite side faces of the lever Q2and they are intended to ensure a better guiding of the lever ea insliding along the bar 93.

The bar s3 is carried at both ends by two blocks 95 and 96 which aresecured by means of screws 98 together with a base plate 9? on the upperface of the headstock 5. Between the base plate and the upper face ofheadstock 5 are inserted several washers lit), the thickness of which isselected at the time of mounting.

One end of the bar 93 is provided with a shoulder til resting againstthe face of a recess 9i cut into the block 95, whereas the other end isthreaded and fitted with a nut I08 which bears on the outer face of theblock 9% through a washer llil, a lock washer 19 being provided in orderto prevent the nut from loosening. The bar 93 is therefore held fast inthe two blocks 95 and 9E.

The lever 92 carries, at its left-hand portion in Figure 3, an extensionarm 39 welded at ill on this lever through which extension passes anadjusting sleeve Hi2 the outer surface of which is threaded. This sleevecarries a rim 163 provided with slots Hit by means of which the sleevecan be rotated for adjusting purposes. A scale 12% carried by the rim mscooperates with a pointer 52: secured on the end of the arm 39 in agroove l38 by means of a screw I39. The rim m3 rests on a shoulderedwasher Hi5 itself resting on a group of spring washers 536. These, intheir turn, rest on the base ii of a spindle m8 or shaft having its axisvertical and which passes through the assembly of the washers and of thesleeve it? in which it is freely mounted. This shaft Hi8 rests, throughits base Hi7, on the upper face of the base plate 9?.

The assembly constituted by the lever 92 and the parts mounted thereoncan move longitudinally in a direction parallel to the axis of the bar93, and its motion is achieved by means of the device about to bedescribed. In a hole H2, Fig. 4, drilled in the lever 82 is arranged,with a substantial clearance, the reduced end N3 of a rod Ht. Thisclearance is necessary to enable the lever 92 to slightly rock about thebar 93. The end N3 of the rod H t has a threaded portion with a somewhatsmaller eter, on which portion a nut H5 is screwed, a washer i it beinginserted therebetween. A slit pin Hi prevents the nut from looseningafter mounting. The reduced portion N3 of the rod H 3 is somewhat longerthan the thickness of the lever 92, so that the rod M4 is not made rigidwith the lever 92, this for the same reason for which a clearance hasbeen provided between the rod portion H3 and the inner wall of the holeI i2 of the lever 82. The rod lid can freely slide in a bore H8 providedin the upper portion of the block 96 in a direction parallel to that ofthe bar 93. This rod at its lower part and on a certain length thereofhas a portion cut into a rack H9 which meshes with a toothed wheel 122(see also Fig ure 5) secured by means of a tapered pin I23 on ashouldered end E24 of a driving shaft 125 pivoted in two flanges 126,i271 welded on the base plate 9's. The left or front end of the shaftE25 is provided with a six-sided recess 928 into which the end of awrench can be engaged in order to rotate the shaft. The left end of theshaft I25 (see Figure 5) is formed with a collar ring i252 which bearsagainst a recess l32 cut into the flange i2? so as to longitudinallylocate the shaft 25.

The right end of the rod H 3 (Figure i) slides in a support E33 (seealso Figure 6) which is secured on the outer face of the flange 25 bymeans of screws 434. The support i33 is accurately positioned withregard to the flange I25 by means of tapered dowel pins I35.

At the lower part of Figure 3 are to be seen the base plate 91 and, onthe left hand side of this figure, the flange IN. The latter is providedwith an opening l3t (see algo Figure 1) serving as a passage way for apointer 13? shown as forming a whole with the pointer iZi which, asalready seen, is secured on the end of the arm 99 in a groove I38 bymeans of the screw 39. In this manner and with the help of a scale hi2(Figure l) engraved on the front face of the flange i2? and in front ofwhich the pointer ldl is shifted, it is possible to position along thebar 93 the assembly consisting of the lever 92 and the several partscarried thereby. A cover M3 is welded on flanges I26 and I2? so as toform a rigid assembly and this cover has an elevated portion, as shownat Mt (see Figures 3 and 4), under which the group of two rollers canmove when the lever 92 is slidably moved along the bar 93.

The device just described operates in the following manner:

The drawings show all the machine members in their normal serviceposition, that is to say: the headstock 5 is suspended through the lever92 and the two rollers I5 to the flange II which is rigid with the slide4 and which serves as a rollway for the rollers 15. The axis of theroller device has been placed beforehand substantially on the verticalline of the centre of .gravity .of the head stock. As the rollers I5rest upon the upper face of the flange 'II, the weight of the headstocktends to cause the lever 92 to rock about the axis of the bar 93 but thespring washers I06, previously compressed, bias the lever to rock in theopposite direction. It is, therefore, clear that if the degree ofcompression of the spring washers I06 is correctly adjusted by means ofthe threaded sleeve I02, it is possible to have the weight of theheadstock supported, in the desired proportion, partly by the rollers I5and partly by the slideways 6. If desired, the whole weight of theheadstock can be made to bear on the rollers in order to limit thefunction of the slideways 6 to that of a guiding element only.

Assuming that it is desired to mount any kind of attachment on the frontface I of the headstock (see Figure 1), it is obvious that the centre ofgravity of the assembly consisting of the headstock 5 and the saidattachment is not located at the same place as the centre of gravity ofthe headstock 5 alone. As a consequence thereof, the centre of gravityof the new assembly will not be located on the vertical line passingthrough the roller device axis. It has been explained in theintroduction to this specification that this condition is, for variousreasons, an unfavourable one and that it is the aim of the presentinvention to render it possible to bring the axis of the suspensionroller device on the vertical line passing through the centre of gravityof the new assembly. To achieve this end,

the adjustment is effected in the following by means of a wrenchinserted through the opening I36 to engage the slots I04 on rim I03 soas to rotate the sleeve and relieve the spring washers I00 which thus nolonger press the rollers on the flange II. The roller device then may beshifted along the bar 93 by rotating the shaft I25 by means of a wrenchinserted in the hexagonal recess I28. The rotational motion of thisshaft causes the toothed wheel I22 to rotate, thus driving the rack H9and rod II4 which is attached to the lever 92 of the roller device. Theshifting of the roller device is stopped when the pointer I2I hasreached the desired graduation on the scale I42. This scale can be,calibrated in various ways according to the various kinds of attachmentsto be mounted on the headstock 5, so that the graduation correspondingto the centre of gravity of any given assembly is determined in advance.

The suspension roller device now being located in the desired relationto the vertical line of the centre of gravity of theheadstock-attachment assembly, it has to be stressed again so .that therollers can be made to support their share of the weight of the saidassembly and thus relieve the slideway surfaces of the slide .4. This isdone by rotating the adjusting threaded sleeve I02 in the oppositedirection in order to compress the spring washers I06. The dimensions ofthe device can be determined in such a way that the spring Washers reachtheir maximum compression when the lower end of the shouldered washerI05 comes to bear against the base I01 of the shaft I00. The sleeve I02is then loosened a little, observing at the same time the graduationshown by the pointer I2I sliding along the scale I20 provided on thesleeve, such graduation having been established in terms of the stressexercised by the spring washers according to the extent of thecompression they are subjected to. It is thus possible to know- Which isthe graduation mark corresponding to any given attachment, so that therollers I5 are made to support the proper amount of weight in accordancewith the standard set up. This procedure makes it possible to keepaccount of the variations in the Weight of the assembly constituted bythe headstock and the various attachments mounted thereon, in order tokeep constant the desirable proportion between the amount of load to besupported by the rollers I5 and that to be carried by the slideways 6.

It should be noted that, even if it were desired to apply-the maximumcompression stress on the spring washers, the lower end of shoulderedwasher I05 must not be blocked against the base I01, in order not toblock the assembly formed by the roller-carrying lever 92 on theheadstock. On the'contrary, a small amount of movement should beprovided enabling it to cope with any possible slight errors in themachining 01' mounting of the flange 1! serving as a rollway for therollers "I5. In such a case it is sufficient, in order to make sure thatthe device operates correctly, to loosen the threaded sleeve I02 by asmall amount, for instance a quarter of a turn starting from theposition occupied by the threaded sleeve I02 when the end of theshouldered washer I05 bears on the base I01.

Of course, the present invention is not restricted to the embodimentdescribed and represented, which has been chosen merely as an example.The scope of the invention would not be departed from were embodimentsdesigned in I a way different from that just described but embodying thesame features, that is to say, the position of the suspension rollerdevice for the headstock is adjusted in accordance with the location ofthe centre of gravity of the assembly formed by the headstock and theattachments mounted thereon, so that the roller device is always locatedon the vertical line of the said centre of gravity.

What I claim is:

1. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendinslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslideway surface, said member being supported for movement of saidmember in a given direction horizontally along said surface, thecombination with said element and said member of means providing anelongated rollway surface and supported on said element with the lengthof said rollway surface extending parallel to said given direction, aroller disposed in rolling contact with said rollway surface for rollingmovement horizontally lengthwise thereof, means operatively connectingsaid member and said roller for supporting said member on said rollerfor rolling movement of said roller along said rollway surfaceconcomitantly with sliding movement of said member along said slidewaysurface, said operative connection providing for movement of said rollerand said member relative to each other parallel to said given directionto adjust the position of said roller with respect to the vertical linepassing through the center of gravity of said member and any attachmentssupported thereoni 2. In a machine having an element providing ahorizontally extending slideway surface, and a member adapted to supporttool attachments or the like and providing a surface in slidingengagement with said slideway surface, said member being supported formovement of said member in a given direction horizontally along saidsurface, the combination as defined in claim 1 which comprisesadditional means operatively connecting said member and said roller andproviding for movement of said member relative to each other to movesaid roller toward and away from said rollway surface, and resilientmeans connected to said additional means and adapted to bias said rollerto move relative to said member in the direction to urge said rolleragainst said rollway surface.

3. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslideway surface, said member being supported for movement of saidmember in a given direction horizontally along said surface, thecombination as defined in claim 2 in which said additional operativeconnection comprises means connected to said resilient means foradjusting the degree of resilience of said resilient means to adjust theamount of pressure of said roller on said rollway surface relative tothe pressure of said movable member on said slideway surface.

4. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslidewaysurface, said member beinig supported for movement of said member in agiven direction horizontally along said slideway surface, thecombination with said element and said member of means providing anelongated rollway surface and supported on said element with the lengthof said rollway surface extending parallel to said given direction, aroller disposed in rolling contact with said rollway surface for rollingmovement horizontally lengthwise thereof, a part connected to saidroller for movement therewith along said rollway surface, a partconnected to said member for movement therewith along said slidewaysurface, means operatively connecting said parts for supporting saidmember and the part connected on said part connected to said roller andon said roller for rolling movement of said roller along said rollwaysurface concomitantly with sliding movement of said member along saidslideway surface, said operative connection between said parts providingfor movement of said parts relative to each other parallel to said givendirection to adjust the position of said roller with respect to thevertical line passing through the center of gravity of said member andany attachments mounted thereon, and means operatively connected to saidparts and operable for effecting said relative movement of said parts toadjust the position of said roller relative to said vertical line.

5. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providin a surface in sliding engagement with said slidewaysurface, said member being supported for movement of said member in agiven direction horizontally along said slideway surface, thecombination as defined in claim 4 in which said part connected to saidmember comprises a cylindrical bar supported by said movable member withthe length of the bar horizontal and parallel to said direction ofmovement alon said slideway surface, said part connected to said rollercomprising a lever supported on said bar for pivotal movement of saidlever on the axis of said bar and slidable along said bar parallel tosaid length thereof, said roller being supported by said lever forlOlllilg engagement with said rollway surface.

6. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslideway surface, said member being supported for movement of saidmember in a given direction horizontally along said slideway surface,the combination as defined in claim 5 which comprises means operativelyconnecting said lever and said member and providing for adjustment withrespect to said member of the angular position of said lever about saidpivotal axis.

7. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendinslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding en gagement with saidslideway surface, said member being supported for movement of saidmember in a given direction horizontally along said slideway surface,the combination as defined in claim 6 in which said means operativelyconnecting said lever and said member comprises resilient means adaptedto bias said lever to pivot about said pivotal axis in the direction tourge said roller against said rollway surface.

8. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslideway surface, said member being supported for movement of saidmember in a given'direction horizontally alongsaid slideway surface, thecombination as defined in claim 1, which comprises an elongated elementproviding thereon a rack lengthwise thereof and supported by said memberfor movement of said rack element relative to said member lengthwise ofsaid rack parallel to said given direction of movement of said memberalong said slideway surface, said rack element being operativelyconnected to said roller for electing said relative movement of saidroller with respect to said member upon lengthwise movement of said rackelement, a toothed wheel supported by said movable member in mesh withsaid rack for cfiecting lengthwise movement of said rack element uponrotation of said toothed Wheel, and means operatively connected to saidtoothed wheel and operable for effecting rotation thereof to adjust therelative positions of said roller and said member to adjust the positionof' said roller with respect to said vertical line passing through thecenter of gravity of said member and any attachments supported thereby.

9. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providin a surface in sliding engagement with said slidewaysurface, said memher being supported for movement of said memher in agiven direction horizontally alon said slideway surface, the combinationas defined in claim 1 which comprises means providing a scale carried bysaid movable member, and index means operatively connected to saidroller and cooperating with said scale for indicating the differentpositions of said roller relative to said movable member.

10. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslideway surface, said member being supported for movement of saidmember in a given direction horizontally along said slideway surface,the combination as defined in claim 1 in which said means providing saidrollway surface comprises an elongated flange supported by said elementof said machine, said flange providinga horizontal upper surfaceextending lengthwise of the flange and parallel to said given directionfor rolling engagement by said roller to support said roller and saidmember supported thereby.

11. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslideway surface, said member being supported for movement of saidmember in a given direction horizontally along said surface, thecombination with said element and said member of means providing anelongated rollway surface and supported on said element with the 10face, said operative connection providing for movement of said rollerand said member relative to each other in a horizontal direction toadjust the position of said roller with respect to the 7 vertical linepassing through the center of gravity of said member and any attachmentssupported thereon.

12. In a machine having an element providing a horizontally extendingslideway surface, and a member adapted to support tool attachments orthe like and providing a surface in sliding engagement with saidslideway surface, said member being supported for movement of saidmember in a given direction horizontally along said surface, thecombination with said element and said member of means providing anelongated rollway surface and supported on said element with the lengthof said rollway surface extending parallel to said given direction, aroller disposed in rolling contact with said rollway surface for rollingmovement horizontally lengthwise thereof, means operatively connectingsaid member and said roller for supporting said member on said rollerfor rolling movement of said roller along said rollway surfaceconcomitantly with sliding movement of said member along said surface,said operative connection providing for movement of said roller and saidmember relative to each other parallel to said given direction to adjustthe position of said roller with respect to said member so that thecenter of support of the supporting force of said roller is brought onthe vertical line passing through the center of gravity of said memberand any attachments supported thereon.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS GreatBritain Dec. 17, 1925

